A mother-of-two in Illinois has been arrested after she allegedly lied about her – and her son - having cancer in order to receive donations.

Melissa Barton, 25, of Troy has been charged with felony theft by deception after an investigation revealed she had received money from the church and via donation websites like youcaring.com and wepay.com.

‘It's a shame that someone would claim to have cancer just to receive money,’ said Troy Police Chief Brad Parsons on Thursday.

Melissa Barton, 25, of Troy, Illinois, has been charged with felony theft by deception after an investigation revealed she had received money from the church and via donation websites like youcaring.com and wepay.com

The police say they were notified in early June that Barton was possibly deceiving people and organizations for cash assistance.

An investigation revealed that she had told people she had cancer, that her son had leukemia, and she was asking for cash assistance.

Investigators filed for a felony warrant for Barton - who also used alias names Melissa Dawn Pruett Barton and Missy Barton Pruett - was arrested on Wednesday.

Court documents show she is charged with theft over $500 because she was not honest when she asked a church for money.

A police investigation revealed that Barton had told people she had cancer, that her son, right, had leukemia and that she had asked for cash assistance

Barton was arrested before being released on bond, she has denied that she lied to people.

‘I would never do that. The fundraisers that were made in my name were made by people that did not ask my permission,’ she told KSDK.

Barton did say that she had told people that she and her son had cancer when they both had health scares.

She told the St Louis Post-Dispatch that after finding a lump in her breast last year she had ‘jumped to conclusions’ and told people she had cancer. She later told people that she had a benign mass of tissue removed.

She also told people that her son had cancer. He was born 10 weeks premature and had some health issues, and; ‘I jumped to conclusions, and I said that, I did. But not on the basis of getting any type of money.’

Court documents show Barton is charged with theft over $500 because she was not honest when she asked a church for money

Barton admitted that she had asked her church for help with rent after her fiance lost his job, and that they wrote her landlord a check for $600. ‘I didn't say, “hey, I have cancer, give me $600.’”

She said two people had set up fundraisers without her permission and then sent her checks for over $400 and $24. She used the money to pay utility bills and diapers for her son, she said.

‘I was asking for people to pray for my family,’ she said. ‘I really thought that it was bad, and I wanted to be prayed for. Not once did I ask for money, not once. The police just took it and twisted it,’ she told the Post-Dispatch.

Barton also said that she has received death threats since being charged and is currently afraid to leave her home.

Police are continuing to investigate and are asking anyone who may have been deceived to call the department at (618) 667-6731.